There’s no way around it: decorating a living room can be expensive — even if you stick to just the essentials, it can be easy to break the bank. Thankfully, if you’re looking for budget apartment living room ideas, we have a few tips that can help. Try any of the five ideas below to give your living room big style on a small budget.
Go with a love seat over a sofa
Even a modest sofa can easily cost you $2,000. One way to cut that cost significantly down to size? Opt for a loveseat or settee. Love seats are generally 10” to 15” shorter than the standard sofa, making them far more reasonably priced than sofas. This is an especially smart tactic if you’ve been eyeing something traditionally pricey like a leather sofa.
Use ottomans as coffee tables
Swapping a coffee table for two ottomans can save you hundreds. While wood or metal construction drives up the cost of coffee tables, ottomans upholstered nature means they’re generally relatively affordable. Opt for poufs with more height to make them as functional as a coffee table, and don’t hesitate to top them with a tray so you can safely set items like drinks atop them.
Paint a less-than-perfect piece
For pricey pieces like media cabinets or coffee tables, painting a generic wood design in a color that complements your interior can pay off big. In a pinch, black paint works wonders on just about anything — from Ikea tables to hand-me-down drop-leaf tables.
Use a console to hold a TV
Save the sofa, media credenzas and cabinets are among the most expensive pieces you’ll purchase for a living room. While you save up the funds for your dream piece, try using a more cost-effective console to host your TV. Another option? Hang your TV on the wall and you’ve avoided the need for a TV stand altogether.
Fill it with plants
If furniture exhausted your budget for art and decor, consider filling in the gaps in your room with plants. Generally far more cost-effective than art or lamps, plants can lend just as much visual and architectural interest. Consider fiddle leaf figs, dragon trees, and traveler’s palm for height, split-leaf philodendron and rubber plants for mid-level interest, and Persian shield and prayer plants as tabletop decor.
Lead photo design by Crowell + Company / Photo by Caroline Allison
